Primeval: An Alternative Universe
by Cristal Butterfly
Summary: This is a story about a group of people who team up in order to deal with the anomaly- problem. I didn't use any of the series' characters, however I have one based on Lester, cause he's briliant, got to love his lines.
1. Chapter 1

**I don not own _ITV_'s TV Show called _Primeval_ or any of it's elements. No copyright infringement intended.**

**Yeah, I know that after reading the first chapter this will seem like a piece of fiction rather than a fan fiction, but, bear with me, first creature sighting is in Chapter 2, somewhere in the middle of it :D.**

**Thanks for your patience and thanks for taking time to read this, I hope you won't be dissapointed.**

**Enjoy :)  
**

* * *

**Chapter 1**

It was a cold winter's day outside. Joh was peacefully sleeping on the big red sofa, in front of the fire place, when James entered the room yelling that her phone was ringing. At first she thought it was a dream. Then, as she woke up she hoped it was a dream. She couldn't decide what was worse: that the first restful night's sleep she got in a while was abruptly interrupted by an idiot phone call, that on the other side of the phone she might hear the inspector's voice, or that she'd eventually have to make a decision.

'Yes?' she frightfully squeaked in the speaker.

'Is that Johlynne Magnus I' m speaking to?'

'Ye…s' damn, he sounded like a cop all right.

'Meet me in front of _Harper's Café_ tomorrow at half past seven. Come alone. If you bring anyone with you I'll go away.'

'Wait! Who are you? What…' too late, the bastard had already hung up. What the hell did he want? Was it safe? Should she go? What if she told someone about the strange call she just received? No, that person would surely insist on accompanying her. What if it was important? But what if… Her stream of thoughts was interrupted by James' worried voice.

'Is everything all right? You've completely frozen.'

'Ow!' she closed her mouth 'well, nothing. Really, no bother. Just a … very ordinary phone call.' She concluded with a smile.

'Riiight.'

'Totally! ... I don't wanna talk about it.' she said when she realized James was going to insist. It was like he had a personalized lie detector especially for her. Having solved this out she gave out a sigh and continued to think about her pathetic life as she ate breakfast.

It's been three weeks since she was sleeping on James' very comfortable couch. But she couldn't sleep there for ever. She had initially just moved in for a couple of days and it's been almost a month. Well, James didn't seem to bother, but it was pretty lame. 20 and practically homeless, sleeping on a guy's couch. Well, she wasn't homeless, she technically speaking still had a house, but she had no intention of ever going back there. Hell could freeze over and she still wouldn't go back. She resented that place. It had been the perfect place to live in until a couple of weeks ago. That idiot day. What a spiteful fate. She then remembered how much she hated self pity, so she concentrated on the view offered by the window. The garden was magnificent, filled with bushes and flowers, brought from all over around the world. It was that type of a garden you'd expect to see in front Mr. Darcy's mansion. In fact, the whole place looked as if it had once belonged to Mr. Darcy. A beautifully crafted fence surrounded the property and bushes grew in front of it giving the place a more authentic look. Separating the frontal part of the house from the fence, there was a meadow divided in two by a road that went from the gate to the house entrance. In front of the house one could see many beautiful and delicate flowers, happily smiling to the sky. The house's entrance was marked by a grandiose set of stairs and a terrace. In front of the stairs the architect had put a small round fountain. In front of the stairs there was a large enough portion of pavement to park a car, but the actual garage was accessed by side entrance which was less grandiose then the main one. In the back of the house there was a pond with ducks and fish. It was adorned with water lilies. The mansion in its self was a wonder. It was an old building that had been in the Knighton family for over 200 years. It was a rectangular building of brownish color, with three floors and large windows. It was furnished with taste, every piece of furniture being a work of art. It sometimes amused her to imagine she felt guilty for taking a seat, or touching anything. The terrain on which the house found itself neighbored a forest. The forest, of course, wasn't a possession of the Knightons'. It used to be back in the late 1800's but since then the importance of Sirs faded away and so did considerable amounts of their wealth. Musing about the place she found herself in, it took Joh a while to realize that her bowl was empty and that she had swung the spoon from the recipient to her mouth and back for no reason. Observing what a beautiful day there was outside, she decided to go out, just so to try and flush recent events out of her mind. As she went to get changed, James asked her:

'Are you sure you don't want me to prepare a room for you? There's plenty of space in the house.'

'Neh, I' m fine. Besides I' m leaving soon, aren't I? It's been a little over a week since my arrival. I hope I haven't inconvenienced you in any way, dear Sir, have I?' she smiled.

'Ow, stop it!' he laughed 'And why should you find another place to stay, anyway? My parents left me this house all to myself when they decided to move in order to be closer to the Queen and her society. You know, in order to get Louisa married. They hope she'll meet some Prince Charming and marry well. Anyway, I've got this place all to myself, and it's super cool, but it's also… weird.'

'Are you trying to tell me you're scared, dear Sir?'

'Me? Scared? Not a bloody chance! It's… um… it's… nice to have you around. As a friend.'

'Of course.'

'Of course.'

'But it hardly feels like my own place. It's rather sad.'

'I could arrange for us to have rooms on different floors.'

'I'll defiantly consider your proposal. But know I'd like to get changed if you don't mind.'

'Ok.'

'James?'

'Yes?'

'When I said I'd like to get dressed I expected to do it alone.'

'Yes, of course. Sorry. So is it a deal then?'

'I'll ask my Independence.'

'Well tell her you could pay a rent. I'm sure that'll make her feel alive. Of course, if you don't want to waste money, I'm sure we could think of something else.' he said putting on a cunning smile.

'Can I change now?'

'By all means do.' He said as he left the room.

She quite liked having him around, too. Of course, J. was a spoiled brat, but unlike most spoiled brats, he also was a good natured person. He had a nice personality and a good sense of humor, he was clever and beautiful. He had red hair, short, but not too short and lovely grey eyes. His skin color was light with a vague impression of a pinkish brown hue. When he smiled you could easily loose yourself in his look. He was a perfect guy. Too bad he also was her best friend. But that's reality, life can never be perfect, and consequently, she could never fall for her best friend. Having dressed up she went in front of the mirror to view the result. She wore an oversized woolen sweater, black with a pale red, orange and green model, a pair of dark brown trousers and short black boots that reached little above her ankles. She arranged her long black hair in a pony tail and went to get her coat. Having dressed properly, she exited the house. While halfway across the front yard, James caught up with her.

'Need company?'

'Why not?' she agreed.

'Where are you going?'

'I don't know… I think _Harper's_.'

'No way! Let me take you to some place awesome!'

'J., you promised you'll try to live a normal life…'

'Well, _Her Majesty's Hounds_ is quite a normal place.'

'Maybe for you and your buddies, but for the commoners it's not. And don't go fetch your fancy car. We'll walk. Like normal people do.'

'I don't think I like normality.'

'You'll get used to it.'

Poor sweet James, he was so spoiled, he was helpless when dealing with the world. In truth he couldn't even drive. Fetching his car would have actually meant fetching his driver and his car. He couldn't cook and for him the washing machine was an object designed on Mars. He trusted people a little bit too much, so fooling him wasn't a hard job to do. It was not that James wasn't clever, he was brilliant, he just had blind faith in people because on one hand he liked believing that all people are good; on the other hand he was so used to being treated with respect that he expected everybody to do so. She was amused by the thought that unlike James, she had completely lost faith for human kind. All this species does is to destroy. Of course, there exist exceptions, but as it is said, exceptions reinforce the rule.

Not before long they reached _Harper's_. It was a nice place. It was dimly lit and the atmosphere was perfectly set by perfumed candles. The black walls were adorned with paintings about coffee. The place in itself wasn't big, but because of the way it was lit and because of how the small round tables were arranged, the room seemed spacious. The café had four brick walls and a glass one, the glass one being the one facing the street. The bar was placed opposite to the entrance. The girl standing at the bar seemed quite bored and the place seemed asleep. But not in the negative meaning of the world, it was that kind of a peaceful calmness from another world. Joh and James sat down in a corner after ordering two cappuccinos.

'Soo… Christmas is coming!'

'Mhm.' she said sipping from her cappuccino.

'Why so interested?'

'Why not?'

'But… it's Christmas!'

'So?'

'Um… Aaa…'

'Well?'

' It's the traditional Christmas party my parents usually throw, only this time it' s gonna be bigger. You know, with al the eligible youths residing there. Every possible husband of Louisa will be there- and their families. And… um...'

'Yes?'

'They suggested I don't come alone this year.'

'I'm sorry, you lost me completely. In what way is this related to me?'

'Well… I was thinking… would you come with me this year?'

'Good Heavens, no! Do you want all of those respect- worthy ladies and gents to die?'

'Um?'

'A commoner at their parties? Unacceptable!'

'Really, how old are you?'

'Old enough.'

'Seriously.' he said laughing.

'You're saying they aren't allergic to peasants?'

'No!' he laughing, 'But if it makes you feel safer we could disguise you as a foreign lady from abroad. Somewhere far.'

'I didn't say I'll come.'

'That's why I said "we could" not "we will".'

'Your parents know me.'

'And they like you, too.'

'As your acquaintance, maybe, but as date... they'd skin me alive.'

'Nope, that'll probably kill you. And they can't stain their spotless reputation. But they might hire a hit man. Who knows?' he shrugged.

'That made me feel a lot better!' she responded with a laugh.

'So... come? Please?'

'Why?'

'Because I can't go alone...'

'J., you know I don't do pity dating.'

'It's not pity dating. It won't even be dating at all. I promise!'

'Then what's the point in taking me there?'

'Oh, please, _please_, make my life easier.'

'Oh... I'll come. Ok? But under no circumstance shall you present me as your girlfriend. Got it?'

'No way! I promise. Thankyouthankyouthankyou!' he took a drink from his coup. 'So, what was the deal with that phone call you received earlier?'

'Nothing. Why should there be anything wrong?' She started to feel agitated. What if he suspected something?

'No reason what so ever. Just that you looked dumb folded. But you look like that every day, so I guess nothing unusual there.'

'Don't choke on your coffee, J.!'

'Just to humor you.'

'How's work?' she asked changing the subject.

'Waaa... Sucks... I totally hate my dad for living me with that Cradle guy… Being his apprentice sucks. "Do this, do that, bring me the coffee, go get my mail." I... grr…'

'That's work, you know. You can't get your butler to do your chores for you all your life.'

'Just because I was my dad's temp doesn't mean I was treated like a queen! I went to meetings and did reports and stuff… I got actual practice for when I'll be working. With this guy I feel like I'm preparing to be his bloody maid! Next thing you know he'll make a move on me.'

'Notify me if does. I wouldn't want to stay between you. I'm sure you'd love to go together at the party.'

'Don't make me introduce you as my beggar friend I brought to offer a warm meal for Christmas.'

'I state the rules here, buddy. _You_ need _me_ to come. I don't really need to.'

'Well… you're sleeping in my house!' he said triumphantly.

'Don't push it.'

'Ok. I'll take that back. So if I bribe you, you'll come? Like for sure?'

'Well… It depends… I think I'll come anyway. I couldn' t possibly ask you that much… no. I'll just come.' She botted.

'Joh, assert yourself.'

'For starters I'd like Chrissie for a sleep over.'

'Only that?'

'You have no idea. So, can she come?'

'Any time. For however much time she desires.'

'Tonight?'

'Rigt away.'

'You're the best.'

'I know.' grinned James. 'Look at the time! It's been almost two hours! Shall we go?'

'Yes, we shall.' she said ceremoniously extending her arm.

The reminder of the day passed away swiftly and by nightfall all three friends, Joh, James and Chrissie, were cheerfully having dinner.

'So, Chrissie, how's your life been lately?'

'Now that you asked, I just came back from New Zeeland.

'So that's where you were hiding!' Chrissie was like that. Whenever life got to her she just took off, no good- byes, no nothing. She was there and then the next minute she was gone. Quite hard to keep up with. But she was unique. And Joh liked unique people. She was sick and tired of all the mall girls and low cultured guys, who seem to be cut out after the same model. Every mall- girl was a copy of another such specimen. And so were the males. Their mental capacities didn't go beyond the awareness that they needed to reproduce. Chrissie and James were of the few people who hadn't been monkeyfied.

'Funny you should put it like that. I wasn't hiding at all. I just couldn't their clubs were awesome! Too bad I can't remember much. I've been drunk most of the time. I think I'm still hung over!' Chrissie was a heavy drinker, yet she wasn't an alcoholic.

'So you can't remember a thing?'

'Not much. Fragments only. I remember something about bungee- jumping and then swimming in the ocean…'

'Drunk, yet able to swim, I'm officially impressed!'

'Drunk and able to make money.' Chrissie grinned.

'You are a living wonder. How are the guys there?'

'The usual type: the one you don't like. Most of them. I met a few decent ones, too. A bunch of them.

'I'm starting to fear Mr. Darcy's a myth. It's so hard for us, poor females, to find a decent husband these days…'

'Darling, Mr. Darcy was just human.'

'Yes, but he was closest to perfection. Therefore perfect.'

'He wasn't the only one. The modern Darcy is sharing a meal with us.' Chrissie said insinuatingly. Ever since they discovered that boys and girls were two different species, Chrissie kept insisting that Joh and J. should date. Actually, pretty much everybody they befriended seemed to think they'd make a sweet couple. Joh found it rather out of place and at times annoying, since she lived by the philosophy "Live and let live!"

'Moving on, ladies.' said James conciliatory, 'Chrissie, have you heard of my new job?'

'Really? What job?'

'Cradle's new maid!' laughed Joh.

'...'

'He's Cradle's new maid!' the girls started singing and dancing around him.

'And is he handsome?'

'Yes, he is!' replied Joh for him.

'Aaw, our dear, dear boy is love struck!' At that point both of the girls hugged James and kissed him on the cheek and they all started laughing. This was just like old times, when Joh and James had just met Chrissie. Joh and James were friends since their first days, because her father was Sir Knighton's most trusted bodyguard, due to his being a veteran lieutenant from the Iraq war. He was hurt during a mission and was declared unfit for active duty. Chrissie and Joh became friends the moment they met, due to both being rather tomboyish. Chrissie and James were another story, Chrissie continuously upsetting James with teasing remarks, but they hit it off eventually. But even after they befriended each other James was sometimes upset by Chrissie, and to cheer him up, the girls hugged him and kissed him on the cheeks. James was always a sensitive soul that was upset by the most unexpected things and took comfort in hugs. Of course, growing up, he learnt to deal with his hurt feelings, but secretly, he still found hugs soothing.

'Yes, girls, I see very witty things seem to cross your minds.' said James laughingly, 'but no, I'm not just a mere maid, my job aims much, much higher. I am training to be a government guy who is supposed to keep things under control in case some extreme crisis happens.'

'Promise to give me first hand info 'case something happens, or we're not best palls anymore' joked Chrissie. She was a journalist for _The Times_, and even though she wouldn't admit it, she was quite fond of her job. She was also very good at it. That must be why her boss kept her regardless what she did, thought Joh. Chrissie's methods weren't exactly orthodox. She had sworn the last guy that she had an argument with while researching for an article for fifteen minutes without breathing or repeating herself once. Complaints were issued, but her boss pulled some strings and they were magically voided. "That guy really must love her. She's literary dragged him through hell, but he kept defending her." said Joh to herself. It's true that she was a valuable asset, but his patience was amazing. Chrissie, however, had another view on the matter. She used to say she was the perfect employee: the one you never see, but always gets his job done. It's true that the "you never see" part was due to her rarely showing up at the actual working place since she always flied off to different parts of the world, but as she did stress, her articles were always ready before the dead line.

'What I'll be working with will be classified.' said James full of pride.

'And if you told me you'd have to kill me, right?

'Yep.'

'And what secrets might you have found out? As a temp you get to know all sorts of stuff about everybody. Which aren't officially rated as classified. C'mon, spill the dirt out. Every last crumb of dust. Leave nothing out.'

'What do you care anyway?' asked Joh amused. 'You don't even know any of these guys.'

'Oh, my dear!' said her friend putting on an intelligent look 'I know them better than you think. I did an article on them. The brave men and women protecting our country from behind the shadow. Unfortunately, it's not for the wide public. It's just in case I'm gonna need something from them. But I have the case files on my laptop. Wanna see the pictures?'

'Hell, yeah! Gossiping isn't fun if you don't know who's it about.'

'Hey! Where did you get this?' exclaimed James as Chrissie showed them a page about him.

'Have some respect, will ya? I'm a pretty good hacker. Your amazement is almost offensive!' laughed Chrissie. 'So this' said Chrissie showing Joh a picture of a blond man in his 30s, 'is Annamayson. Is he still cheating on his wife?'

'Maybe he still is.'

'So he is, isn't he?'

'Erm… What for are you asking? Is this going to hit the news?'

'Dear innocent kid!' laughed Chrissie. 'I actually have more than enough info to ruin at leas a dozen of your co- workers, including Annamayson, so nothing you can say could possibly harm them.'

'Um… I don't know….' sighed James.

'Say, say, say!' uttered Joh.

'Ok… Well… he's not discrete at all!' he laughed. 'At this last party'…


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Gossiping and remembering the good times they had as three kids coming from different worlds growing up together, they passed the night.

As Joh woke up and went in the kitchen, she thought J. and Chrissie were acting strange, however they denied it. Who knew? Maybe the incident from her house finally got to her. Lately she'd been playing the detective, doing a little investigation of her own, about the murder that took place in her house, and paranoia had started to reach out its arms and grab her, especially after that phone call. It's all right, she told herself. Everything was going to be fine. The fact that she eventually decided to meet the no-name-phone-guy made her feel exhilarated, proud of her courage and worried at the same time. Somehow, in the back of her head, an annoying little voice, she had hard times trying to shut up, kept her telling she should listen to reason and that it wasn't safe to go. That gave her an odd feeling that something bad was going to happen. Ignoring her inner conflict, she put on a smile and said:

'Hey guys, you're up early!'

'Yeah, well Chrissie remembered she had to be in Wellington tomorrow, not in two days' time, so she'll be living today.'

'And you look so cute when you sleep, I decided not to wake you up. As for James, he's helping me pack.'

'Ow… that sucks. Too bad you have to go… can't that story wait for you?'

'Not if I wanna keep my job, no.' smiled the other girl.

'Ooo. Now she cares about keeping her job!' teased Joh.

' `course I do.' replied her friend smartly 'I need money to travel.'

'May I help you pack?'

'Actually, yes. We haven't even started yet and the train leaves in 9 hours. I don't want to spend all of them packing.'

9 hours? By that time she should be leaving for a date with her mystery guy. All for the better. She wouldn't have to be making up all sorts of excuses to leave the house.

'Let's start then!' she said, feeling guilty for feeling happy about Chrissie's departure.

Entering her room, they understood what Chrissie meant by saying she wouldn't want to spend all the remaining 9 hours packing. Her room was an unbelievable mess. Chrissie was able to create chaos with a minimum of things at her disposal. All of her possessions she had brought with herself were scattered all over the room, on the bed, on the table, under it, on the chairs, hanging from the drawer.

'Did your bag explode?' Joh critically said, picking up a beautiful black dress she had almost stepped on.

'Sort of.' laughed James.

'I was just searching for a blouse that happened to find itself on the bottom of my bag.' shrugged Chrissie innocently.

'You should have seen all her things fly out of the bag as she was searching for it!' he laughed again.

Packing up took them 5 hours since they had to search for Chrissie's things and sort them before actually packing them. Having finished packing, they played around the property.

Joh found it so easy to be around them, because with them she felt like she could really be herself, and not be judged for it. Actually, over time she had learnt not to care what people said or thought about her, but as a child, she had had problems with adaptation and being accepted due to always being the odd- one- out. When all the other girls were playing with dolls and coloring, she played with cars and climbed in trees and when they learnt how to dance, she learnt how to kick box. When all her class mates were falling in love for the first time, she was entering her first rock band.

The 5 hours they spent together passed away in the blink of an eye, and having said their good- byes, Chrissie left for the train station with James, who had offered to help her with the luggage. Issuing a head ache, Joh remained at home. Chrissie's early and unexpected departure had left her with 30 minutes to ready herself and leave to meet with her mystery man. She threw on her track- suit, hastily combed her hair in a pony tail and trying to keep herself calm, she rushed out of the house. As she rushed through the streets, all sorts of things popped up in her head. She was starting to have second thoughts about going there. She now wished she would've told James what she was up to. Now if something happened to her, nobody will now where to look for her. Nonsense! Nothing bad was going to happen, and she'll finally be getting some answers- some how she felt it was all connected to her house.

When she reached _Harper's_ it was already 35 past 7 and started fearing she had lost her chance. As she was powerlessly staring at the _Harper's_, someone snatched her from behind and started dragging her to one of the less circulated neighboring streets. She tried to scream, but she couldn't make a sound, the unknown guy had covered her mouth. She was going to die. Why hadn't she told James, or anybody at all for that matter? Why had she been blind to reason? She felt him loosen his grip, but she was too terrified to act. She was paralyzed with fear. Somewhere, in a still active part of her frozen brain, it was clear that she should attack him and then make a run for it, but she couldn't bring herself to move a muscle. Having reached the street's dead end, he threw her to the pavement and took out a revolver.

'Not so tough now, eh, kitty? I told you not to meddle with things that aren't your business.' He loaded the revolver and proceeded to push the trigger.

Then three things happened: a strange tiger- like creature appeared out of nowhere, landing on top of the killer and splashing his blood everywhere, Joh ran to the wall blocking the street and tried climbing it and James and Chrissie, followed by 2 individuals, Joh had never seen before, appeared from around the corner.

Having finished devouring it's pray, the tiger directed its attention to Joh. She was struggling to climb the wall, but was unable to. Chrissie and James were yelling at the creature, trying to get it to leave their friend alone, but it couldn't be bothered. The feeble little thing she just ate was delicious, but not in the least consistent and the smell of the feeble little thing that was trying to escape was simply mouth watering. The noisy little things will have to wait their turn to be converted into diner.

Just as it jumped to snatch Joh, one of the two strangers shot the tiger like animal with a tranquilizer gun and took it down.

Feeling she could take it no longer, Joh let go of the wall and collapsed on the pavement. Chrissie and James rushed towards her and helped her up.

'You ok?' they asked worried.

'All right.' she responded passing them and heading towards the creature that moments ago tried to eat her. It resembled a tiger, but something was not quite right, out of place. It was the most curious specimen she had ever seen in all her 4 years of studying zoology and 2 years of working as an animal expert at a zoo keeper. Then, as she studied its teeth it struck her. It was not a tiger: it was a saber tooth cat!

'What's that thing?' Chrissie managed to choke out.

'A saber tooth cat.' Joh told her startled.

'Both you and me', said the girl of the two strangers, 'know that saber tooth cats are extinct. So let's be reasonable and accept we saw nothing, shall we?'

'Nothing my ass! That _nothing_ just killed a man and almost ate me too… within minutes!'

'It is an exotic breed of tigers that escaped from a private zoo.'

'So at first it was nothing and now it's an exotic breed of tiger. We're making progress here.'

'What are you implying?' said the stranger raising an eyebrow.

'The truth.' Joh answered coldly.

'Listen up, missy, go telling people that you've just seen a saber tooth running loose on the streets of Cardiff and see if they believe you. You'll surely have fun in an asylum.' said the woman, in a cold voice, between her teeth.

'Is that a threat?'

'No.' she answered simply, 'it's a warning.'

'Uum…' said Chrissie in a small voice, 'you might want to look behind you...'

'Can it!' the woman and Joh both said, without looking at her, staring each other in the eye.

Than as Chrissie was preparing to deliver a witty response, the beast gave out a growl, leapt over the wall and lost itself in the night.

'Congratulations! You fully deserve them!' the woman yelled in a desperate voice, 'You got it! It's a saber tooth! And now, because of you it's free in the city. God only knows how many people you've condemned to death! I hope you're proud of yourselves!'

'Don't you…'

'Zip it and get in the car! All of you!'

'Why?' Chrissie uttered in an aggressive tone.

'Because we're going on a saber tooth hunt and we can't let witnesses behind. So after we deal with the kitty, we'll deal with you.'

Realizing that protesting won't get them anywhere, the trio got in the back of the black Jeep.

'Ok,' said Joh, 'so, which one of you has exclusive knowledge on dealing with animals?'

'Eh?'

'You know… trained to handle all sorts of beasts and stuff.'

'None of us.'

'So, what do you guys do?'

'Hating to state the obvious, we catch and contain them.'

'Don't worry, it wasn't obvious at all. And apart from that?'

'Does it look like this is a piece of cake and we're freelancing for fun, having time to have other jobs? Or a life?'

'Well, tell me, which university gives courses on how to _catch and contain_ prehistorical creatures.'

'That you mean. Well, I used to work as a crime scene investigator for The Yard' said the girl, 'and Rick over here' she said pointing to the man on her left, 'used to be a doctor.'

'Ok. Let's say I get it how a copper starts chasing extinct creatures, but how the hell does a doctor get involved in this?'

'Being in the right place at the right time, I guess.' said Rick, 'Psy was investigating a murder for which a friend of mine was _liked_ as the criminal, so I followed her around. Along the way we met with Professor Wilkins and his walking- talking- encyclopedia of a student, Harper, who were on the trail of a strange reptile, which proved to be a raptor and also, our killer. Sending it back to its times, we told the Government and they set up the ARC. And since we already knew about the phenomena and successfully handled'…

'The what?'

'Not now.' Barked the girl Joh supposed was Psy.

'Well, all in all, we were allowed to stay.' concluded Rick with a smile.

'I bet you have a lot of questions. But this is classified. More classified than singing in the shower. That's why we're taking you back to the headquarters. To sign stuff. Like you agree to wipe this happening out of your heads.'

'Bu…'

'Or we can have you arrested. I'm the head of The Yard's department working with special cases under the supervising of the British Government and Rick's the doctor assigned to this cases. I thoroughly suggest you sign. Asylums can bit a bit boring at times.'

'Bu…'

'Your choice.' she shrugged detached.

'Actually, I'm not so sure about that. I've had enough brain to tape everything you've said since we got in the car and I'm sending it to my computer. By the way, Chrissie Carrow, The Times journalist, pleased to meet you.' she said in a sarcastic manner.

'Tapings aren't valid probes.'

'Let the public be the judge of that. And if anything happens to us I _promise_ you that they _will_ get to judge.'

'And not to brag, but, ahem,' James coughed in an affected manner, 'I am James Knighton, future Sir Knighton that is. And about the current Sir Knighton, since you work with the Government, with the Home Office I presume? Yes. Well, I'm sure you heard of him. You chose the wrong lot to pick on.

'Ok, people, I sure this My- Daddy (boss) - is- Cooler- than- Yours discussion is very fulfilling, but what about focusing on the task at hand? We have a vicious predator on the loose'…

'Who's we? You're not a part of this'…

'Listen, you need to catch a very angry and confused saber tooth, lost in a world that's not its and he doesn't understand. And you clearly have problems with dosing the tranquilizer. You need someone trained to deal with these kind of situations.'

'I somehow fail to see the link between what you said and you.'

'I work with the zoo, consequently, I'm trained, amongst others, to deal with having dangerous animals on the loose. Of course, we never kept extinct animals, having the common sense to acknowledge the term _extinct_, but I'm sure I can manage.'

The girl opened he mouth to protest, but Rick spoke first, cutting her off:

'She's right, you know, Psy. I can track them down, but she is the expert.'

'Ok.' She agreed unwillingly, 'but only this once.'

'Ok. Where can I mix the substances?'

'How about… here?'

'Really?'

'Really. We're kind of short on time in case you haven't noticed.' Psy said.

'You couldn't stop the car while I work, could you? No… figured. Than avoid road cracks and keep in a straight line. I have to measure _precise_ quantities.' She said grudgingly.

That Psy girl… she seemed to still blame her for the tiger getting away. Well, it wasn't her fault she was using crappy tranquilizer, mixed by some random incompetent.

As she started approximating the quantities of every component she should use in order to actually make it efficient, images of how the creature crushed the man, ripped him in two, devouring him until nothing but some boned were left of him, within seconds, splashing his blood all over her came to her mind, making her sick. Completing her work, she strived to think about anything else than recent events, not to relive the terror that overtook her body as the creature came after her. Mid- thought, she heard noises coming from the square they were passing by. Forcing herself to think, she realized that the noises were actually cries of distress coming from a bunch of terrified people. Waking up from the shock- induced trance she managed to say:

'I think we found our run- away.'

Handing Psy and Rick the tranquilizer guns, they got out of the car and rushed towards the square.

'Ok.' said Psy, 'You, Chrissie, The Times journalist, get this people out and far from here. Feed them some credible cover story. Exotic breed of tiger from a private zoo or something, I'm sure you'll manage to think of something, after all, that's what you do for a living, isn't it?' she concluded in a stingy voice. Before Chrissie could open her mouth to say something, the woman started continued:

'You, pampered royalty, help her. Zoo chick, come with me! Rick'll approach the creature from this side of the square. You and me will try to get it from the other side, you know, get it cornered. C'mon, people, no time to waste! MOVE IT!'

They all speechlessly obeyed her orders. She was like a biped version of the animal, only fiercer.

In order to get to the other side, they started cautiously sneaking behind a row of benches. Reaching the end of the row, they had to move in the open. As they passed by a coffee shop, Joh saw her reflexion in the mirror: she was covered in blood. That sickened and chilled her to the bone. She felt her legs were failing and she was going to throw up. She was a walking blood bag; she might as well ask the animal come have a bite. As she was gasping for air she heard a roar and Psy's agitated voice urging her to run. She tried doing as told, but her legs wouldn't listen to her; incapable to stand anymore she fell to the ground. The saber tooth was twenty feet away. She blinked. The saber tooth was ten feet away.

'Shoot it already!' she managed to blow before closing her eyes again. She delayed reopening them, not wanting to see the tiger ripping her into pieces. The last thing she felt was something heavy crushing on her body.

* * *

**Constructive criticism, or rewievs are holy. :)**


	3. Chapter 3

**This chapter takes place in the ARC building of this universe. Craft (my version of Lester :D) makes his first appearance here. :D Hope you're gonna like him :).**

**

* * *

**

**Chapter 3**

'Wake up! C'mon, open your eyes!' some annoying voices kept repeating on and on. If they weren't going to stop she was going to punch them, she thought while turning towards the direction the voices came from and blindly landed a punch. As she hit something she heard one of the voices cry out in pain. It sounded oddly familiar… It was…

'Oh, my God, J., I am so, so sorry!' she sprung on her two feet, eyes wide open.

'Yeah… no problem.' he said massaging his lips. Looking closer she saw his lower lip was swollen and bleeding. She tried to apologize again, but Rick spoke over her:

'So how do you feel? Any numbness? Or pain? Blurry memories or stuff?'

Now that he asked, every fiber of her body twitched, but why? It took her a few seconds to remember, images coming back to her like disconnected fragments of a movie, running on fast forward: the phone call, the decision, going to meet the stranger, the saber tooth cat. Wait! That was wrong, saber tooth cats were long dead, it was common sense to know that. Maybe it was a dream. Scoping the surroundings, she realized it was nowhere she had ever been to before; she was standing in a square, fairly large room, filled with plants and tables, with glass walls facing the corridor and three normal ones. The place looked a little like a green house.

'Where… where a… re we?'

'The ARC.' Rick responded promptly.

Most defiantly a dream.

'And why isn't Noah and a large group of animals here to greet me?'

'It's not that arc; it's the Anomaly Research Centre, our headquarters. Basically, it's our work place.' Psy laughed.

'Ahem! I see you're all having fun. Mind letting me in on the joke?' asked a fairly thin, black haired, brown eyed, tall man with a voice that showed a certain degree of arrogance.

'Mister… uhm… Who _are_ you?' Joh asked.

'Sir, actually, Sir Shelby Craft.'

'Well… Sir Craft? Would you mind telling me where on Earth am I?'

'I take it you haven't been debriefed? Tut, tut, tut, Psyke, what do I pay you for? Misses Magnus, Carrow and Mr. Knighton, you are inside The Anomaly Research Centre, more commonly referred to as the ARC, which is, as the name tells you, a Government facility set up with the purposes of investigating and understanding the phenomena referred to as anomalies, through which one could travel in time, containing any creatures that pass through this anomalies and keeping the casualties to a minimum. You are now fully briefed. As to your rights, well, you don't have the right to ever speak of, or even remember the ARC and anything related to this subject. Don't forget to sign the papers on your way out. Have a good night.' said the thin individual with obvious attitude problems.

'Uhm… boss?'

'Yes, Cartman.' said Craft carefully pronouncing each syllable and raising an eyebrow.

'I've… talked it over with the team and… we came to the conclusion that all three of them would be valuable assets for us.'

'And since when, Mr. Cartman, are decisions around here made without me? Have I been unknowingly relieved of command?' his boss said smiling ironically.

'No sir, of course not, but… we need them now that it's not only the creatures we have to deal anymore…'

As Rick said that their faces turned grim, even Craft's, who seemed to no longer posses the power of fighting with Rick and accepted to listen to Rick's reasoning. As Rick argued, he was a good doctor and a skilled tracker, so when it came to the animals he could track them, but that was pretty much it. Joh, on the other hand was trained especially to deal with this kind of situations, so having her around meant dealing with the creatures more efficiently. Chrissie would represent a handy link to the press, who started speculating about unusual creature sightings throughout the city. And James could be Craft's new assistant, since he was continuously complaining he needed one ever since his last one quit his job. This way no one else needed to find out about the ARC. After listening to Rick's speech, Craft reluctantly agreed and took off without saying another word.

'Apparently you're part of the team now…' sighed Psyke, 'under normal circumstances, I'd introduce you to the rest of the team, but they've all gone home, and I suggest you do the same. Go get a warm bath and some sleep, to shake off the effects of the shock you are experiencing. The program starts at 8 o' clock sharp. And, you, pampered royalty, Craft will want to talk to you tomorrow and instruct you on your duties, so don't forget to stop by his office, as soon as you get back here tomorrow. That would be all. Good night, guys, Cooper will show you out and drive you home.'


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

'Hello guys!' said Joh enthusiastically as she entered the 'Coffee Room', a room where the ARC staff went to chill out during assignments, breaks or when there was nothing else to do.

'Hey, rookie, come sit with us.' cried a familiar voice. It was Rick's.

Joh went to the table the team was seated at. Last night she had only met Rick and Psyke, but now the whole bunch was there. Aside from the pair, the team consisted of four more people: an asian girl, a Cruella De Ville- looking woman, a middle aged man, whom Joh assumed was Professor Wilkins, and a geekish guy in his early 20's who had to be that Harper genius.

'Hello!' said the Japanese girl in an exhilarated manner, looking genuinely enchanted to meet her and James. 'I'm Yuna.' she continued as she came to give them a warm handshake, 'You must be Joh and James. Take a seat.' she said, her smile widening as she dragged the two to the vacant chairs, placed near her own.

'Ow!' she exclaimed slapping her forehead, 'we know who you are, but you don't know us! This is Professor Wilkins' she indicated placing a hand on the man's shoulder, 'and he is Daniel Harper, his student' she added, pointing at the fairly nerdy looking guy sitting next to Professor Wilkins, 'and she is Skyler Renda.' Yuna went on, going to the Cruella De Ville woman's side. She was a tall and slim woman, with a solemn atmosphere of doom and silence about her, somewhere in her mid- 30's, who seemed to better fit in a model agency, rather than a government facility with her short, spiky, dark- grey hair, dark- crimson lips, black eyelids and marble white skin. Judging from her clothes, which seemed to have come straight of a Parisian cat- walk, she most defiantly was a fashion victim.

'She is the team leader, so if you have any problems she is the person you want to talk to. And they are Rick and Psy, which you already know.' she concluded.

'Hi guys, nice meeting you.'

'Isn't Chrissie going to join us?' required Skyler.

'She's gone to discuss something with Craft. Apparently, she doesn't want to have to go in the field and face the creatures.' James told her.

'Speaking of, how did your meeting with Craft go?' twitted Yuna merrily.

_'Your job is to help me manage the paperwork, make phone calls, follow what the media says, attend all the boring board meetings I'm supposed to go to, keep an eye on my schedule, remind me when my kids' birthdays are, basically, you are going to be my obedient minion. Am I clear?'_

_'Yes, sir.'_

_'And do you know what that means?'_

_'That I'm going to be your trusty shadow?'_

_'It means, Mr. Knighton, that if you don't have anything intelligent to say, then shut up. I can't afford having my personal assistant look like a bloody buffoon. Got it?'_

_'Yes, sir.'_

'It went well…' nodded James.

'Did you ask where your office is?' laughed Rick.

_'And be sure to have your pager on you at all times, I don't have the slightest intention of wandering off in search of you every time I need to give you an order. Well, don't just stand there, looking at me with that eyes, like a dog craving for attention, go make yourself useful!' Craft said in a superior voice._

_'Excuse me, sir, but where is my office?'_

_'I never thought anyone could be more annoying than my last assistant until I met you… Come on! Or do you expect a piggy- bag ride?' exclaimed Craft at a half- paralyzed James._

_'Here we are!' said James' boss triumphantly, when they got off the elevator, 'this is where you will be working.' he said directing him to his desk._

_'B… b… but this isn't a private office… This is a public staff office.'_

_'Why, Mr. Knighton, your observation skills are overwhelming! Just because you are my assistant doesn't mean you have any rights.'_

'Of course e did.' chuckled Psyke, standing up and taking a few steps back from the table, 'they all do. "Could you direct me to my office, sir?" se said in a squeaky voice, then imitating Craft's icy one "I never thought I'd ever meet a more annoying person than my former assistant until I met you"…' she was interrupted by James's pager, which started beeping.

'Guys, Craft wants me to inform you that there's been an anomaly report. Take care.'

'I hope it's going to be something nice… a baby something.' said Yuna hopefully as they headed towards the Control Room, which was for the ARC the equivalent of a mother ship to a fleet. Entering it, they had the surprise of seeing Craft there, yelling at the technician.

'How are we going to explain mammoths to the general population? Bloody mammoths, for crying out loud!'

'Hairy elephants on steroids?' suggested Yuna innocently.

'Yes… I see the matter- sucking black whole in your head is expanding.' he said shooting every word at her.

'Calm down, Shelby.' Skyler told him, 'you do realize that Manby isn't responsible for the existence of mammoths, no? Tell us what happened'

'An anomaly opened in the middle of the mall and a shopping- crazed mammoth had the courtesy of comming through!'

'So what? We'll just drive him back through. You exaggerate so.' She said in a soothing voice, trying to calm him.

'You can't!'

'What do you mean we can't?'

'This.' He said switching on a TV.

"Panic overtakes Cardiff as a giant furry elephant…"

"Sources confirm it was first seen at the mall, where it wreaked havoc, taking down everything in its path, then made its way through the city, terrorizing…"

"It currently is in the Central Square…"

"What could this mysterious creature be and where could it have come from? Zoologists are at loss for words as they…"

'Cut them off! I want them cut off!' he blew turning the TV off.

'This would mean killing pretty much every channel in the country…' Skyler tried to argue.

'I don't bloody care!'

'Shelby, get over yourself. Cutting off one telly channel, or even two is one thing, shutting al of them on the other hand… that'd only confirm how big this is. We'd better go and take care of the problem and then Chrissie could have an exclusive on what happened, some credible cover up, which would also make the evening news. Problem solved. So take it down a knot and go do… whatever it is you do when a crisis occurs.'

123456789

'So how do you always manage to boss him around and get away with it?' asked Psyke as the parked the Jeep just outside the safe perimeter established around the city centre.

'I don't know… I just do.' shrugged Skyler. She was the only one who allowed herself such familiarities with Craft, like scolding him, or calling him by his first name and such, and the only one permitted such liberties. 'I have apparently succeeded in taming the beast. Now let's see how are we going to deal with the mammoth. Joh, when you're ready with the tranquilizers go give them to Rick and then go stay in the car.'

'What?'

'You've had no field training. There's no way I'm putting you in the field before that. No but's or anything. I am your team leader and I expect you to obey an order when I give it.'

'She's only doing it for your own good, you know. Get in the car.' Rick told her gently, 'You'll have your chance to shine pretty soon.'

How annoying this whole situation was. She was supposed to stay in the car like she was some kid who couldn't look after herself. Skyler even made her repeat what she was supposed to do: get in the car, but don't lock the doors, if a creature comes towards it she should be able to make a run for it. It was like her mum telling her it was ok to play _hide and go seek_ in the house, but she shouldn't lock herself in the wardrobe. Well, tough luck, she had other ideas.

Just as she was about to get out of the car and head to where the action was, she noticed a shabby- looking man staring at her. His clothes were worn out to the point where it wasn't clear anymore whether they were made out of patches or of one piece of material and his hair was greasy and messy, desperately asking for a hair cut. The stranger was so thin, his eyes seem to be popping out of his sockets, adding an extra touch of madness to his look. So intense was he staring at her, Joh felt his gaze at a physical level. With a feeling of extreme uneasiness, she dug in the car seat and locked the doors. Then, heart beating like a drum, ready to rip her chest, she looked outside, trying to see that man again. He rose some kind of morbid fascination in her. She _had_ and _wanted_ to know more. But he was not there. Maybe she had imagined it? It was impossible, the glimpse lasted for a moment, no longer, but the feelings it had stirred up in her were still there and they were so intense it was impossible for them to be just a product of her imagination.

123456789

'Is it ok if I place these here, Professor Wilkins?' asked Yuna putting the equipment they used to study anomalies down on the ground.

'Yes, dear, it's fine.' he said putting down his share to carry, 'Danny, come help me set the _Anomaly Wave Detector_ up!'

Putting the equipment down, Yuna looked around her. They were in the middle of the mall's second floor, where the corridors that run along the shops met in a circle- resembling open space, where cunning entrepreneurs had set up terraces. Colorful tables and chairs were usually found there, in perfect order, arranged in a cheerful manner. Now they were in complete chaos, having been thrown all over by the enraged mammoth trying to make his way out of this strange, new world. Many had been crushed in his desperate pursuit of freedom. The mall currently offered a pitiful sight. Bits of tables and chairs lay scattered on the floor along with chunks of wall and bits of shattered glass. In Yuna's mind an apocalyptic story unfolded. And for a moment time stood still.

123456789

The raging mammoth was devastating the city with a dangerously high accuracy Skyler thought as the approached it. It was a magnificent animal, huge and imposing, having a way of making one feel small and insignificant next to him. It could crush any human in an instant. Through out her life, she had learnt that people are frail beings, with only a thin line standing between life and death, whatever that was. Everything they faced was lethal, possessing the capability of whipping them out of existence within seconds: vicious Raptors, giant T- Rexes, sly saber teeth, that watched their pray from afar and then moved in for the kill, the 14 meters high Taborasaurus, Alioramus, a cousin of T- Rex's… every time they went out to face a creature there was a good chance they wouldn't come back. She thought of Joh, the anger and frustration in her eyes as she was being sent in the car… but she didn't know what it meant to send friends in the field to never see them alive again, listening to them drawing their dying breaths, unable to do anything to help them… but Skyler knew and she didn't have the slightest intention to put herself through that again… Someone was screaming in the distance… a man and a woman. No, a mammoth was going ballistic on the city. _It's a trap! IT'S A TRAP! GET OUT OF HERE! …_

'Sky, are you OK?' Rick asked worried.

'Yeah.' she said frowning in an attempt to stay focused, but the man and the woman were still screaming…

'Cool. So how are we going to take this little fellow down?'

'Well, that's going to be the easy part, provided we have enough tranquilizer. Getting him out of here… Now that's going to be a challenge.'

'There's enough tranquilizer to put down a… lot of horses.' smiled Rick, 'and once it's down all we need is a large container, some truck for really heavy things to stuff him in, to get him back to the anomaly site and get him home.'

'Yeah… but you forget one thing' Psyke broke in, 'he's _real_ heavy, a- couple- of- tons- heavy. How are we going to move him?'

'Hmm… Psy, Rick, wait here! I have an idea. Don't let the mammoth leave this place, but keep him awake; tranq him only if there's no other option. Got it?'

'But… where are you going? And bloody how am I supposed to entertain a mammoth?'

'I don't know, Rick, figure something out!'

Rick turned to Psyke and gave her a crooked smile.

'No, Rick, I'm not going to play bate in whatever sinister plan's cooking in there.' said Psyke poking his forehead and smiling back.

123456789

'What did I tell you about locking the doors?'

'Oh… Hi, Skyker.' Said Joh mechanically, jumping out of her skin, 'There… Yeah, sorry…' She decided not to tell anybody about the stranger, they didn't want her on the field as it was, seeing things wouldn't make them any more eager to trust her.

'OK… Come with me.' said Skyler getting in the driver's seat, fastening her seatbelt and starting the engine up, 'we need to get ourselves a huge truck to transport the mammoth in.'

'And how do you plan to do that?'

'I… don't know, I didn't get to that part yet… I suppose Rick and Psy will drive it in.'

'You do realize they're nothing more than a pair of ants to him, no? At most, he might decide to step on them, but otherwise, it won't be bothered. We need something to lure him into the truck.'

'How? He travels in groups… What? Don't look at me like that, I read sometimes. Anyway, he'd be attracted by the presence of a mammoth herd, wouldn't he?'

'Not if it's not his.'

'So what do you suggest?'

'Sounds. We need to get our hands on a recording with him and isolate his cries. Given the time we have, the quality won't be so good, but let's hope it would be familiar enough to make him take a look.'

'Yeah, good idea.' said Skyler driving through city.

'Look, Skyler, that seems to be a fitting container.' said Joh pointing at a large circus truck they passed by, 'How are we going to get it, though?'

'Let me make a phone call. Go talk to them.'

'Excuse me… Ahem, _excuse me_' she tried to get their attention, 'We need your truck.' The men looked at each other, gave her a sly look then bursted into laughter.

'We really…'

'Hello, fellows! I'm afraid your truck is government property. We're going to take it now.' Skyler said with a satisfied smile emerging on her lips as she pointed to her gun.

'How come I didn't think of that?' Joh muttered to herself, as she followed the truck Skyler was driving, with the Jeep.

123456789

'Isn't he cute?'

'Seriously, Rick? Are you the new Yuna? Did she indoctrinate you already? Do you want to keep him too?'

'You gelous?'

'Bah!' she uttered, raising an eyebrow, trying to look disgusted. 'No. No way.'

'So, then why don't you like her? I mean we're not even dating anymore. You can stop picking on her now.'

'Excuse me? I couldn't care less whether or not you were dating. She's just infuriating with all her kindergarten- attitude and weird ideas…'

'So you don't like her because she's different than most people?'

'Bite me. That's not what I said.'

'So, tell me, Rick, if you're not dating anymore, why do you care?'

'That's none of your business.'

'You know what? Shut up. You're so cute, until you open your mouth, then you turn into a total jackass.'

That was not what she wanted to say… Yes, she was gelous! Yes, all she thought about when he was around _was_ him!

'Fine!' he said, turning his back at her.

'Fine!' she repeated, turning her back to his.

'Erm… Psy?'

'What?'

'Is the mammoth within your field of vision?'

'What? You don't see him?' she screamed, turning to face his back again.

He turned around, to look at her. Damn, she was cute when she was angry.

'Are. You. Telling. Me. We. LOST A MAMMOTH?'

And scary.

'HOW THE HELL DOES ONE LOOSE A MAMMOTH? A FREAKIN HUGE MAMMOTH? Skyler is going to kill us…' she broke down in a whisper.

'C'mon, it's gonna be Ok.' He said patting her shoulder, '_Don't worry, be happy…_ I mean how hard can it be to spot an oversized elephant?' he quickly added, seeing the aggressive look she gave him.

'Ok…' she said breathing in, 'Which way?'

'The noise seems to be coming from that direction.' He said grabbing her hand and dragging her towards the sounds. _Silly girls, no spatial awareness._

'Look, there he is! HEY! YOU, BIG FUR- BALL!' yelled Psyke at the mammoth, but it took no notisce of her.

"NO, no, no!' exclaimed Rick in an attempt to stop Psyke, who lifted a chunk of pavement and threw it at the mammoth, hitting his lower left leg.

The mammoth gave out a trumpeting sound, turned around and charged in their direction. It was now Psyke's turn to grab a flabbergasted Rick by the hand and drag him.

'What did you so that for?' asked Rick angrily.

'To get his attention.'

'Well, you got it. Now how are you going to make him focus on something else?'

'It's a plan in progress.'

The mammoth was raging mad with pain as he had hurt his leg in the shattered glass and Psyke had unknowingly hit his wound, pressing bits of glass deeper into his flesh. But even so, Psyke and Rick weren't fast enough to outrun him. Just as he was about to plunge his tasks into the little beings, something caught his attention. A sound. A familiar cry… could it be his herd? He decided to go and check. The sounds were coming from inside a strange big box and it seemed to be a cry for help. For a moment he thought of attacking the box, but not wanting to risk hurting his kin, he entered it, but there was nothing in there. Before he could react, he felt something sting his hip and darkness followed.

'Ok! Shut it in!' cried Skyler.

'Pfeuh, not a moment too late…' said Psyke

123456789

'Skyler, care to explain why you brought a mammoth back with you?' asked Craft in his regular icy voice.

'Because the anomaly closed before we could send him through.'

'And what exactly do you expect me to do with it?'

'I don't know, you're the boss, it your job to deal with the administrative problems.' she said smiling and leaving him behind.

* * *

**Please review. :)**


End file.
